As bullet points:
- Don’t assume that vertical authority is the only kind. This has been a common Western error through the centuries.
- Even when dealing with a system with a purported vertical structuring of authority ask whether that system is actually functional. If I understand the Pakistan situation correctly, for example, there are multiple interest groups competing with one another within the framework of a (supposedly) rational bureaucracy.
- Be aware that publicly associating with an individual or institution may undermine their authority depending on the pre-existence of anti-American sentiment, &tc. Again, Pakistan.
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